Social Withdrawal and Social/Asocial Dissatisfaction in Late Childhood and Early Adolescence

The main aim of this study was to understand the role of social/asocial dissatisfaction in the links between social withdrawal subtypes and internalizing problems. To date, only a few previous studies have investigated the underlying processes that may help to explain relations between social withdrawal subtypes and internalizing problems. A sample of N = 459 students (n = 247 girls) aged 8-14 years completed a self-report online questionnaire assessing social withdrawal subtypes (i.e., shyness, unsociability), social/asocial dissatisfaction (i.e., loneliness, aloneliness), and indices of internalizing problems (i.e., social anxiety, depression). Findings from path analyses indicated that shyness was related to social anxiety (95% CI is [0.111, 0.219]) and depression (95% CI is [0.166, 0.371]) via an indirect pathway through loneliness. In contrast, unsociability was associated with social anxiety (95% CI is [0.021, 0.069]) and depression (95% CI is [0.014, 0.041]) through loneliness and related to depression (95% CI is [0.002, 0.036]) through aloneliness. Results also highlighted some moderating effects of age and gender. For instance, the association between unsociability and internalizing problems through loneliness was stronger among girls than boys. Shyness was more strongly associated with internalizing problems through loneliness among older than younger children. This study investigated the contribution of social and asocial dissatisfactions in linking social withdrawal subtypes and internalizing problems in the critical period between late childhood and early adolescence. Future intervention programs could improve caregivers’ awareness of the motivations and implications of each social withdrawal subtype.